Using Art to De-Stress

MY ONLINE LINE DRAWING AS ART TO DE-STRESS

I made the picture of the cat accompanying this article using a photo editor. That is a good way of making a line picture and of course you can mess around with other edit functions too. That is my favourite way to use art to de-stress online.

However, that is not the kind of picture I want to talk to you about today.

YOU DON'T NEED TO BE ABLE TO DRAW OR PAINT FOR THIS

I want to introduce you to the idea of using paint and brushes and other materials without needing to be able to paint or draw. There was a time you did this, when you were young wasn't there?

THE FINISHED PRODUCT WAS NOT IMPORTANT

Think about the time when you were a child. You loved to use paint and crayons and didn't worry if the picture got finished. It was the act of using the medium that was important, not the end result.

THEN THE GROWN UPS STOLE THE JOY OF ART FROM YOU

Then some well meaning adult probably asked you "what is it?" or worse, they told you how to do the drawing or painting better. That gave a message. "You are not very good at this."

SO YOU STOPPED PAINTING AND DRAWING

That is where most people stop. They decide they are not able to draw or paint and so they down tools and turn to other things. They joy of using paint or crayons is lost. There is a reason for this.

ART GOT STRESSFUL WHEN YOU COULDN'T DO IT "RIGHT"

An action meant to be relaxing becomes stressful if someone tells you you cannot do it in the right way.

ART FOR DE-STRESSING IS DIFFERENT

Art for de-stressing is different. It doesn't need some kind of finished product. You can have fun and throw what you did away or keep it just like you did back in nursery before all your problems wound you up.

ADULTS NEED PERMISSION NOT TO CREATE, FINISH OR MAKE A RECOGNISABLE PRODUCT

I have discovered that if you give adults the paint and crayons and paper and tell them just to enjoy using them without worrying about the end result, people usually have fun and sometimes will produce a nice picture. However, the point is you do not need to worry if you don't.

MY ART FOR ART'S SAKE COURSE

Why would I create an teach an entire course doing just that? I will tell you. it comes our of a bad experience of becoming ill with stress.

Yes,

I discovered the joy of simply using the paint and crayons for myself at a point when I was most stressed.

THE HUGE PIECE OF PAPER AND THE PAINT

I was in a group of sick people in an art room and asked what I would like to do. I replied I wanted a huge piece of paper and to throw black paint at it.

Given the paper, I began. Only something amazing happened. I started off throwing black paint at the paper and some of the tension and stress eased. Then I started on other colours. Each time I chose a brighter colour and others joined in. Some were far more stressed than me.

THEN STRESSED PEOPLE STARTED TO LAUGH

In the end, six stressed people were all throwing paint at the paper and laughing.

Laughter is good for the soul. We were all more relaxed.

ADULTS NEED PERMISSION TO PLAY

I had something to hold on to. The action itself is therapeutic and you can use paint without having to make a picture and PERMISSION not to create and to simply play.

HAVE FUN AND SCRIBBLE

As adults we set ourselves up to fail because we think everything we do has to have an ending and look good. Sometimes it is best just to scribble.

MY ART DE-STRESSING COURSE

I was pleased to be asked to run it in a mental health centre, but it also worked in an ordinary college.

People found "Art for Art's sake as I called it very relaxing.

It is a pity the government funding ended so soon.